[Text, Friday afternoon]

[professorwolf]

[Lyall's been meaning to get on the network again for a while, and now that he's finally got a few things to say, it takes him a minute to actually get started. He does finally, though, after a couple false tries.]

Lyall here. I've been in the gallery, and I think a lot of the rest of us have, too. I've even been by that forum, though I didn't post anything. I find it a little disconcerting that whoever was replying kept referring to people as "humans", as if he or she was not one. Given what we've seen thus far, I do not think that is impossible.

Also, I know at least one other person has heard howling sometime at night. I heard it, too, Wednesday night. It wasn't those mutant dogs, the smell was entirely different, and no one else around me seemed to have heard it or even noticed something was wrong.

[He isn't sure whether or not to mention the dream, but he does say:]

I keep thinking it's something connected to all this. That howl, and the feeling of being watched a few others have mentioned, and that wolf statue, with all these visions and changes we're all going through.

Has anyone else heard it or felt anything strange?

[Private text to students, pre-students, and former students:]

I know a certain one of my students has been joking about a club. I was thinking of making it official, if you really wanted to have an after-school club of some sort for those of us on this network. All age ranges, so long as you're still in school of some sort?

Comments

[struckout]

That would be even more suspicious.

[ Which is to say... well, it's possible she'd take the offer if she wasn't so paranoid still? How good is he at reading grumpy young adult?

Or well, maybe he doesn't have to pull out the deciphering books after all, because not more than twenty seconds later: ]

There is something I'm wondering if you could help me with though.

[professorwolf]

[He's good at reading grumpy teenager, but grumpy young adult is really pretty different. Thank goodness for second comments.]

I can certainly try. Should I ask here, or would you rather talk about it off-network?

[Given the vague request came on the heels of an invitation to talk in person, he can only guess the two are tied together.]

[struckout]

It would need to be in person.

[ Unfortunately, what she has in mind isn't something she can even leave behind for him to look at later- both a curse and annoyance, really. Obviously, she's still fairly reluctant about this. ]

[professorwolf]

[And if she's reluctant, all he can do is be accommodating and hope she doesn't back out.]

Then just tell me when and where, and as long as I'm not in school at the time, I'll be there :)

[struckout]

You don't teach last period, do you?

[ She... honestly can't remember. ]

[professorwolf]

I have CP Bio last period, I'm afraid. My prep is first thing in the morning. Directly after school next week perhaps?

[struckout]

I really don't know what my sched will be like after today, next week.

[ Considering her parents' rather understandable worry about her- and their insistence that she stay 'home' while she can. Kind of puts a wrench in things, yeah? ]

[professorwolf]

Well, you can come by today, if it's not too short notice.

[And he'll just... mosey on back to school, so he can be there when she gets there, yup. It's not like he lives far.]

[struckout]

It'd be an hour or so, but I guess.

[ As if she gave him much other choice. 8|; Nevertheless, she may or may not be already tying her shoes on with an odd sort of mixed reluctance. ]

[professorwolf]

I'll see you shortly, then.

[He gathers up his laptop and a snack and a bottle of flavored tea, tells Stella he'll be back soon, and heads out. The hat is an automatic accessory, since the sun isn't down yet. It only takes him fifteen minutes to get to the school and get the classroom unlocked. Any time after that, he'll be sitting at the front counter with his laptop, putting together lesson plans with the network in the background.]

[struckout]

[ Kallie actually does have a car, but considering she has to pay for gas herself, she typically finds taking public transportation or her own two feet to be the more efficient way of getting somewhere she needs to be. Needless to say, that happens to be the case here, which is why it indeed takes her roughly an hour to show up.

... Looking a little different than she had before. The serious expression is as in place as ever, but framing it is some very oddly colored hair: the result of hair that's faded to pink, been dyed dark again... and promptly started to fade right back to the rosier color instead, resulting in an awkward tannish peach that she's since given up on.

She's pretty aware that there's no way it will go unremarked on too, which feeds into her just short of tentative manner as she pulls on the door, lightly knocking only as she's already in the process of opening it... ]

[professorwolf]

[Yeah, that gets a good ten-second stare, right there. Then Lyall blinks, pushes up from the counter, and asks,]

Did you get tired of brown...?

[Really, Kallie dying her hair was the last thing he'd have expected. It made very little sense, and didn't fit with her character at all, especially these days!]

[struckout]

[ Kallie's gaze drops to the side, brows drawing together and, incredibly, a considerable flush to match her hair's new natural hue spreading across her pale face. Her parents were bad enough, where she had to pretend that she's okay with it and did it on purpose; here she has no motivation to play it off.

Edgy and more than a little defensive, her body is stiff as she closes the door behind her back. ]

It's a pulse... thing.

[professorwolf]

Oh.

[And the surprise melts down into sympathy. That makes a lot more sense, given what he knows about her character, and what he knows about her character suggests that she wouldn't like that at all. So he smiles, a little apologetically, and motions for her to come further in and have a seat, if she wants one.]

That's got to be a pain. You must have a lot of people giving you looks like I just did.

[struckout]

Hm.

[ The blush at least starts to fade with that, even if the tension naturally lingers. Kallie lifts a hand to brush absently at her nose, blows out a breath as she moves from the door, trying not to duck her head too much. It's not like the gesture would make the hair color any less noticeable anyway. ]

Asking how I managed it, mostly...

[professorwolf]

Which requires making something up. How awkward for you.

[And he's sympathetic. If for some reason his hair changed color, he'd be completely baffled how to explain it to other people.]

Well, I assume that's not what you wanted to talk to me about. I'm afraid I'm not very good at dying hair, I won't have any tips for fixing it.

oh wow I must have deleted this notif...

[struckout]

[ She half-shrugs- "I'll deal." ]

Yeah...

[ After a moment, she steps up, crossing past desks (funny how much bigger the room seems now, when it's mostly empty), until she's finally just close enough to hesitantly pull off the messenger bag she's carrying and lay it against the side of the counter.

Stalling a bit, yeah. Unfortunately, there's only so long that that works, though. ]

I have... another ability. Have for a while.

no worries, happens to everybody ^^

[professorwolf]

[No sense beating around the bush. Lyall nods, and asks,]

What's this one?

[He's guessing it disturbs her somehow, or at least confuses her, so she wants a second opinion. No way to find out, though, except ask.]

[struckout]

[ She huffs out another heavy breath, lips then settling into an awkward line. Briefly she considers trying to explain it, but after a beat of deliberation, decides simply showing him would be best-

For a moment, she brings her hands together, concentrating as she stares at her fingertips pressed together. This part isn't necessary, no, but she's since learned during her experimentation that it helps; the harder she focuses, the better the chance that she'll... well...

... Produce a few gleaming white feathers in the process of snapping her hand out, summoning to her for only a second the silvery outline of some sort of large, bladed weapon. After an instant the intangible gunblade flashes back out of existence, but the feathers at least remain, fluttering to the tiled floor, almost innocently.

Kallie just keeps a neutral expression, or at least tries to. In actuality, she can't quite resist raising her eyebrows a bit, even as she remains holding her tongue. ]

[professorwolf]

[Lyall blinks in surprise, watching that, and takes a minute to come up with any kind of reply. He hasn't actually seen much obvious magic yet... just Bakura's own impressive summoning. This one, while less startling, is more... pretty, he supposes he'd have to say.

After a beat moves around his desk to pluck up one of the fallen feathers. This summoning actually has a scent to it, unlike Bakura's diabond, or whatever he'd called it.]

What is that, that you're trying to summon?

[struckout]

A sword. I think. That seems to be the consensus.

[ And she just loosely crosses her arms for lack of anything better to do, watching him pick up the feather with more interest than she'd like to let on. ]

... A really elaborate one.

[professorwolf]

It did look... pretty elaborate. And where do these come from?

[He holds up the feather to indicate that's what he means and then, in what has become automatic when he's not guarding his actions, gives it a curious sniff. Then a second, frowning a bit, to try and verify the scent.]

Whatever it is, it doesn't smell like any bird I recognize....

[struckout]

[ Before she can answer the question, she's too busy frowning at his comment instead- ]

Are you sure?

[ The kind of rose-like scent she was already aware of, but she'd thought... well, she isn't quite sure what she expected. ]

[professorwolf]

Quite. Though that doesn't necessarily mean anything, since I really only have any idea what birds in the city and nearby areas smell like. There could be a breed of swan or albino hawk that this is related to that I've never met before. Still....

[Since she's so interested, he gives the feather a third, more obvious sniff, drawing it across his face under his nose, not quite touching it to his skin.]

It doesn't really even smell like bird, at all... there's roses, which is strong enough I imagine you could pick it up, and something kind of wild and... hot. Except not. It's like it's multiple contradictory things at once, I can't really explain it properly.

[Trying to put words to scents is hard enough, as it is, without having something this alien to try and describe.]

[struckout]

[ It would be a lie to say that Kallie isn't disappointed, regardless of just how small her hope was that there would be some sort of answer lying in wait here. Resignedly, she just leans her hip against the counter, refolding her arms, pausing a moment before she says anything more. ]

Just more mystery, then. [ Another beat as she looks at him, then glances away towards the floor. ] They disappear when I'm not paying attention, too.

[ ... And just as promised, the ones that hadn't been picked up...? Had they even existed in the first place? ]